


Magical

by Shaymed



Series: O.C.tober Flash Fiction [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-02
Packaged: 2019-07-23 20:21:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16166306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shaymed/pseuds/Shaymed
Summary: Part 2 of the O.C.tober challenge by colorfiend. Yes, it's supposed to be a drawing challenge. But who cares? A flash fiction series is awesome!Altain, from my steampunk pirate series 'All That Glitters' is featured in this story.





	Magical

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on:
> 
> Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Shaymed  
> Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Shayscreativenonsense/  
> Tumblr: http://shalaena.tumblr.com  
> Twitter: https://twitter.com/Shalaena

The alley where I knew I’d find my next witness was across the city from the little shack. It was narrow and filthy. The cobblestones were littered with old papers, rubbish, and refuse. The smell was overwhelming. I had to wonder if the water coating the stone and collecting in puddles was actually water. How could anyone live in a place like this?  
A head of black hair poked up from behind a metal trash can. His green eyes widened, then he bobbed back down. Maybe he thought I hadn’t seen him.  
“Altain,” I called out.  
He bolted away, heading for the other end of the alley.  
“You’re not in trouble. I just want to talk.”  
He paused, his back to me as he thought.  
“It’s about what you saw downtown.”  
He spun on his heel and watched me walk up to him. I stopped and withdrew my notebook, then smiled.  
“I ain’t done nothin, copper.”  
To the untrained ear his accent sounded Cockney—he even substituted the th for an f. But there was something else to it. Just under the surface. Hiding. He wasn’t from around these parts. None of the witnesses really were. But that’s the beauty of this city, isn’t it? People from all over came to live in a strange sort of harmony, knowing none of them belonged among each other, but acknowledging that they all have something in common which brought them to this one big melting pot.  
“I know you haven’t. I’m just wondering what you saw in the alleyway.”  
He swallowed and shrugged. “And what do I get in return?”  
“What do you want?” I asked.  
“Bit o’ quoine, to start, I think.”  
I raised an eyebrow, then smirked as he squirmed. “I don’t have any quoine. I’ve got a five, though.”  
His brow lowered as he scrutinized the bill in my fingers. “Paper good as brass?”  
“You have my word. Now, the alley.” I yanked the bill back as he tried to snatch it.  
“Right.” He licked his lips. “So, I weren’t lookin for trouble. You have to know that. You see, that alley is home to the best dumpster in town, right? Posh restaurant dumpin leftovers ‘round the clock. Was havin me some caviar, like a real aristocrat, I was.”  
“And?”  
“I hear this bangin ‘round in the dumpster. I climbed up to look and…” He trailed off, his eyes trained behind me. “Bloody hell.” He spun on his heel and, just like that, was off, sprinting away like a madman was after him.  
I turned and felt for a moment that I was that young teen. That I was the one with the green eyes gone wide at a sight that was both beautiful and frightening.  
Blue lights swirled down the alley like a swarm of locusts. They advanced on me so quickly that I, too, turned and ran, as though the devil was at my back. This was no devil, though. I knew what this was. What I didn’t know was who was on the other end of it.  
“Down here!”  
I dove into a gap in the side of the building. A sheet of metal slapped over the opening and we were shut in darkness. Altain lit a match and then a lantern with it. The crawlspace was narrow with no room to stand and only wide enough for two people to stretch out side-by-side on the floor. Half of the space was taken up by two moth-eaten blankets, a burlap sack stuffed with crumpled newspapers for a pillow, and a small crate which held the lantern and a couple worn books.  
“Sorry ‘bout that, love.”  
“Does that happen often?” I asked.  
He pursed his lips and looked away. “Yeah. Someone’s lookin for me. But they can’t find me yet, see?”  
“Why is that?”  
“Don’t know. Just…can’t find me. Not yet. Not ’til we’re ready.”  
I wrote in my notebook. “So you hide from the—”  
“Kijaam. ‘Course I do. Those with kijaam see everything, don’t they? Gods among men, right? And women, of course. Everyone.” He shuddered and ran a hand over his hair. It flattened and stuck from the grease, then slowly sprung back upright. “They can do anything they want, can’t they?”  
“He who holds the magic holds the power. Is that what you saw in the alley?”  
“No. Something jumped out of the dumpster and straight at my face. Next thing I know, flames are shooting by my head. Nearly took an ear!”  
“Is that why you screamed?” I asked.  
His brow furrowed. “I didn’t scream. It was that girl with the bright yellow hair—almost golden, really. I wonder how much a lock of it would fetch?”  
I pursed my lips and held out the bill I’d promised him. “Trust me, you wouldn’t get anything. Thank you for your time.”  
“Oy, love, you ain’t seen this place, right? Never spoke to me, neither?”  
“Of course. Thank you for your time, Altain. Be seeing you.”  
He leaned forward. “What? How soon? When? Where?”  
I only smiled as I crawled from his filthy little haven.  
Two down, twenty-eight to go.


End file.
